Pandora's Heir
by SWQuinn
Summary: In Ancient Greece there once stood a box that housed some of the most terrible and terrifying demons of the world. In order to see they Pandora was Cursed with curiosity she did not heed the words of her creator and opened the box, she and her family line were then cursed with the task to imprison the demons again, so no pressure right?
1. Chapter 1

Ok so this might not be the grandest tale of all time but it is a hell of a story. When the world first started the time of man was at its highest in fact it was even called the Golden Age of Men. I take you to Greece where under the rule of the Olympians life was grand and right and wonderful. That is of course until my ancestor, Pandora, happened to open a very dangerous box: a box she was warned, mind you, not to open. For inside this box lay demons of old: strife, sickness, toil and a myriad other ills. All but one demon was unleashed onto the world and caused the downfall of men. Because of her defiance, Pandora and her bloodline were condemned to hold the curse of the box until all demons were captured and put to rest. For over 5000 years, heirs have endeavoured to right this wrong, but most have failed.

On the year 2015 a young girl happened to be celebrating her 21st birthday. This girl was the last remaining descendant of Pandora; her name was Torrance, or Tori for short. Up until now Tori's life has always been a series of misfortune and distraught. An orphan at a young age with foster families as dull as can be can leave a girl with a bit of a loner complex. Luckily her parents left an inheritance grand enough to help her afford a fine apartment on the not too bad side of the city as well as a pass for college, Tori was content to be alone for as long as she possibly could and with no ambition to do anything spectacular with her life; apart from going to college and holding down a job at the same time, Tori dwindled through life at the steady pace of a regular run of the mill human. Little did she know the Gods had a different plan instore for her and her destiny.

You see at this stage of human evolution, brilliant minds brought about technology, it had taken over everything we once believed about magic, in fact it became all but myths and legends. We soon came to worship electricity and machines instead of the Earth that houses us. In doing so the very magic created for us believers has all but diminished. The little amount left has been harvested by the Olympians to give to the saviour of mankind. They have let the humans stew in the demon's self-loathing for too long that to look upon the Earth now grieves them. In order to restore all they once cared for means they must help the heir of the one who betrayed their trust. The Gods must help Torrance overcome her exuberance for normality and save the people of Earth.

So, you can imagine my surprise when half way through my birthday celebrations I was plucked from my little city flat to the white heavens of Olympus only to be told that I must enslave all the demons that escaped from that damned cursed box!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Fire. Searing hot fire all around me, its tendrils climbing the walls of this dank and desolate place. This cave that was meant to be my forever home, a place of responsibility and position bestowed upon me by my creators. This fire so bright and intense burned it way through my skin and now its consuming my mind.

Screaming, all I can hear is screaming!

' _Please make it stop. Please make it stop!'_

And all I see is wisps of blackness flying all around my head, "why?" I screamed, but they didn't scream back. The air they disturbed as they glided around me tormented my soul, making me question the consequence of my sudden inability to keep these so-called demons confined in their prison.

' _I should never have opened that damned box! Why did I open it? He told me specifically not too and I defied him. He's going to be so furious!'_

As I laid my body to the ground waiting for the relief of death, above me a bright and pure burst of golden light opens and out steps the most beautiful man that must have ever been created. Zeus, God of Gods, the harbinger of Lightning.

"Poseidon, put out the flames." his voice was silken like sweet honey as he commanded one of his companions to extinguish the fire.

"Asclepius, heal her wounds."

A smooth and cooling waft of air made its way around my body, my burns that had oozed with thick red blood and the blackened skin was all but gone, my body was once again whole. After regaining some semblance of my mind, I slowly and carefully rise from the ground ready to face the wrath that is Zeus.

''I told you did I not?'' Rhetorical although the question may have been I felt the need to answer but soon found myself cut off by his voice. A voice I once took comfort in as a child.

"I gave you this position, this mission because you asked for it. I placed my trust in you and allowed you, a child of the gods, to keep this box safe and to keep it closed. Too much responsibility to put on you I see."

He circles my form as he tells me of my failing, not that I don't know the consequences of my action. There's only one thing I can do know that can place me back in his good graces. Only one true selfless act that can help redeem my soul.

"I submit to the terms brought forth in the agreement of my position."

The silence that followed was tense and heavy, much like the weight upon my chest. He knows this is the only way to stop the madness, the only way to save me, was to kill me. This he knew, this was what he told me when I was first told of the task. He is the God of Gods even he can not go back on his word, even if it means he must end the life he gave me.

"Pandora, creation of Olympus' finest, I hear by sentence you to a life unfulfilled, a life of suffering and immortality. You will be quartered and separated to all corners of the world, the creations that sprout from your body will be the only hope this world has to rid its self of the demons you so kindly set loose. If they fail to cleanse the Earth your soul will be forever placed in Tartarus, the darkest reaches of the Underworld. Do you accept such a thing? To rely on those you do not know to save your soul?"

With my head bowed I could not see his face but I knew he stood in front of me, his body towering over mine, as though to remind me of the seriousness that is my sentence and his voice no longer filled with disappointment but instead pity. I never wanted his pity, only his approval.

I use these few precious moments to commit his voice to memory before slowly tilting my head to look the him in the eye, "Yes, they will succeed where I have failed, Father."

The last thing I see before the agonizing pain takes over my mind is my father's face, set in stone with his eyes fixated on mine. He slowly nodded his head and soon the agony of a powerful sword thrust was all I could feel.

Bolting up in my bed, sweat dripping from my forehead and a panicked scream ripped from my throat, I soon realise, "it was just a dream". Settling my breathing was difficult, this time the dream seemed so real! Like I was actually there, in that dank and gloomy cave, I remember the feel of the oak from that damned wooden box. It was so delicate, I could've broken it just by dropping it! Wy must I be tormented by these cursed delusional dreams?

Always with the dreams and always only on this day. October 1st, not a day I look forward to which is ironic, considering its my birthday. And on this year, it falls on a special birthday.

Not that I've had many good experiences with birthdays. Don't get me wrong they weren't all terrible but not at all fantastic either. Moving around from place to place, care home to care home it kind of leaves you feeling a little bit lost in the grand vastness of the world. Things like birthdays get lost in the mix of starting new schools, meeting new families and carers and in general trying not to bring too much attention to myself.

That's another fun fact about myself: I like being invisible. Not being the centre of attention means you get by in life with no pressure, socially or academically. Not that that means I don't like being around people, I do. Just not all the time. So, I guess modern teenage terminology would, technically, classify me as a loner.

I'm cool with that though. I like being alone sometimes. We all do I suppose but to me its calming. I have no one else to worry about or be responsible for, don't need to try with people all the time so when I get home I can shed all the day's weight at the door and not have to give a shit. At least not until tomorrow. But those few hours of solace to me are bliss because I can do what I want and no one can say otherwise. In fact, I remember vividly a few foster parents who would rat me out to carers about not participating in family dinners. Now don't get me wrong they were alright people, never shouted, yelled, beat or neglected any of the kids in their care but what they liked was a good proper family meal were every single person would sit and take turns in talking about their day.

I know right: boring. And like I said I don't particularly like being around people, so why would I go out of my way to sit down for nearly an entire hour to talk about my boring, run-of-the-mill day that was most likely the exact same as yours? I wouldn't, you wouldn't either I bet. Besides none of them could cook worth a damn.

But now, I live my life the way I basically did back then but with a little more freedom and boy do I love that extra bit of freedom. Now I know what you're wondering: how can I afford to run an apartment and go to college at the same time? Well, first of I should state I wasn't in the foster system because I was abandoned. I was orphaned at a very young age. My file says I came into the welfare state's care just weeks after my third birthday. However, my parents were in fact very well educated. My father was a soldier who was killed on active duty shortly after I was born. My mother, who was a highly-paid military defence lawyer at the time, invested the insurance and benefits that were claimed on his death certificate. Unfortunately, being a very good lawyer as she was, did in fact cause her to make a few enemies. According to the police file, she was hit by an unidentified and unmarked white van on her way home to relieve my babysitter for the night. Now doesn't that sound fishy.

So, basically my mother left all assets and insurance claims and investments to me in her will. In short, I'm kind of rich, but not too rich that I can spend my money willy-nilly on just anything. I technically don't even need to work, I just don't like sitting around doing nothing. Plus, I like the gym, I get half price on membership fees and get to watch super fit guys for the majority of my shift. Also, it's not a place that is generally overcrowded during my shifts, so win-win for me. I still get to keep my invisible stature in the world. I get to remain unimportant.

But boy was I wrong!

' _Happy 21st Tori, it's gonna be a great day_.' Sarcasm comes to me as naturally as breathing does. What can I say it's a gift.

Sliding my legs from under my quilt was a difficult endeavour, if I had my way, today I would stay in my bed till noon. However, the world dictates that I continue life as normal on this less than perfect day. College awaits me, and strangely enough this thought is enough to turn my frown the right way around. That's right people I can smile just don't expect it to happen often.

Manoeuvring myself to the bathroom was an easy feat once I knew what lay ahead of me today. Pausing in the hallway to gather my towels, I then close my bathroom door and strip myself of the sweat drenched pyjamas and enjoy the pleasant combination of hot water and orange scented body wash.

Getting to college was no problem in this city, I walk a few blocks over and there I am. It's the traffic that's a nightmare, honestly anyone crazy enough to have a car in the city deserves the hour-long commutes. Grabbing myself a delicious frothy caramel latte before heading upstairs to class I contemplate todays lesson. This semester we started with ancient civilizations. Romans and Greeks specifically. I've never known why but their history just fascinates me, I soak up all knowledge of them both real and legend.

As I sit down at a desk far from any other student I read the lecturer's desired topic of discussion for today class and smile. _'This is gonna be a good day!'_


End file.
